Spilled coffee on best Mac I’ve ever owned

[jlc1978]

I thought it was a little expensive when I ordered it, but when I unpacked it and started using it, I could see why.

In December 2018, I ordered a current model 2018 Touchbar MacBook Pro 13” i5/256gb from the Apple refurb store. Took 3-4 days to arrive at the Apple Store at La Cantera, San Antonio.

Picked it up, and what an incredible machine. Fast, sleek, and with the latest gen 3 butterfly keyboard, an absolute joy to use.

This all came to an end on Thursday February 21, when I inexplicably dropped a cup of coffee on the keyboard and screen in my hotel lobby. Fried. machine.

At least I had my new iPad Pro 11” with keyboard and Smart Cover for my work and travels the rest of the week. I had no choice but to order the exact same Mac again from the refurb store.

Thoughts?

Check your insurance policy. Mine covered accidental damage when I dropped my MBP.

 

[mrt.plt]

Same thing happened to me around 2 years ago. I spilled coffee on my MacBook Air in a library where drinks were prohibited (irony)
I always keep a safe distance between my MacBook and my drink haha.

Anyways, repairing a liquid damaged MacBook is quite expensive and it could die on you anytime. I would have it repaired and sell it as-is, and get a new one. Otherwise if you have insurance you can get reimbursed as well.

 

[crawfish963]

Same thing happened to me around 2 years ago. I spilled coffee on my MacBook Air in a library where drinks were prohibited (irony)
I always keep a safe distance between my MacBook and my drink haha.

Anyways, repairing a liquid damaged MacBook is quite expensive and it could die on you anytime. I would have it repaired and sell it as-is, and get a new one. Otherwise if you have insurance you can get reimbursed as well.

This is true. It may operate normally for a period of time, however, often corrosion will start on the board until one day it stops functioning, seemingly out of nowhere. A good rule of thumb is: If you have spilled liquid of any kind into the machine, you should assume the worst and seek options to stop corrosion from forming (either Genius Bar or another repair shop).

 

[IngerMan]

It’s not often I don’t have a open beverage when I use my laptop. Water, Coffee, wine. I just make sure the liquid is in arms reach but far enough away if tipped over it’s not going on top of my key board.

 

[jlc1978]

It’s not often I don’t have a open beverage when I use my laptop. Water, Coffee, wine. I just make sure the liquid is in arms reach but far enough away if tipped over it’s not going on top of my key board.

I buy silicon keyboard covers cheap from Aliexpress (about $4 per) as an added layer of protection. I once spilled a beverage on mine and had issues, luckily it didn't set off any water detectors and Apple fixed it for free; it is possible the issue was not related to the spill but I now use a keyboard protector just in case.

 

[alex87f]

Just a general question.. my SO spilled rather vast amounts of coffee on her 2010 MBP (and not just once), and it never really seemed to mind. Each time I opened it and used paper towels to get the coffee out of it (I think I removed the HDD and maybe the battery but that was it), and years later it still runs just fine.

Did she get really luck or are the new computers more fragile?

 

[TomOSeven]

Same happened to my Thinkpad.

Except the Thinkpad is totally fine and somehow the coffee cup broke.

 

[PhoneI]

I thought it was a little expensive when I ordered it, but when I unpacked it and started using it, I could see why.

In December 2018, I ordered a current model 2018 Touchbar MacBook Pro 13” i5/256gb from the Apple refurb store. Took 3-4 days to arrive at the Apple Store at La Cantera, San Antonio.

Picked it up, and what an incredible machine. Fast, sleek, and with the latest gen 3 butterfly keyboard, an absolute joy to use.

This all came to an end on Thursday February 21, when I inexplicably dropped a cup of coffee on the keyboard and screen in my hotel lobby. Fried. machine.

At least I had my new iPad Pro 11” with keyboard and Smart Cover for my work and travels the rest of the week. I had no choice but to order the exact same Mac again from the refurb store.

Thoughts?

Yep, done this twice now

 

[mrt.plt]

Just a general question.. my SO spilled rather vast amounts of coffee on her 2010 MBP (and not just once), and it never really seemed to mind. Each time I opened it and used paper towels to get the coffee out of it (I think I removed the HDD and maybe the battery but that was it), and years later it still runs just fine.

Did she get really luck or are the new computers more fragile?

I'd say it's a little bit of both. It's just harder to open up newer MacBooks to clean up in such cases and not a lot of people do it.
Apple's making it harder and harder to repair the devices they sell. I saw a video by Louis Rossmann on YouTube about new MacBook keyboards and how they're unnecessarily hard and time-consuming to replace.
I need to change my SO's MacBook Pro battery (it's a 2014) and it also is an unnecessarily complicated process.
However, it's also possible to spill coffee on a computer, and kill it immediately -- so your SO was lucky.
When I opened the MacBook that I spilled coffee on, I saw that all the coffee basically hit the fan and there was coffee everywhere.

 

[JagdTiger]

Hopefully, it was a lesson learned for you.

Never have food or liquid near your Mac, iPad or iPhone.

I did that to a iPad but nothing really happens but it looked like the coffee got into the speakers.
[doublepost=1551106274][/doublepost]

I'd say it's a little bit of both. It's just harder to open up newer MacBooks to clean up in such cases and not a lot of people do it.
Apple's making it harder and harder to repair the devices they sell. I saw a video by Louis Rossmann on YouTube about new MacBook keyboards and how they're unnecessarily hard and time-consuming to replace.
I need to change my SO's MacBook Pro battery (it's a 2014) and it also is an unnecessarily complicated process.
However, it's also possible to spill coffee on a computer, and kill it immediately -- so your SO was lucky.
When I opened the MacBook that I spilled coffee on, I saw that all the coffee basically hit the fan and there was coffee everywhere.

It’s not just apple but try to open and fix a radio now a days.

 

[Donnation]

Well, look at it this way. It was eventually going to get the stagelight defect anyway.

 

[MBAir2010]

I did that to a iPad but nothing really happens but it looked like the coffee got into the speakers.
[doublepost=1551106274][/doublepost]

It’s not just apple but try to open and fix a radio now a days.

If you can find a radio nowadays!
Which i need to do for baseball games on AM without spilling coffee, i need to stay on topic!

 

[JagdTiger]

If you can find a radio nowadays!
Which i need to do for baseball games on AM without spilling coffee, i need to stay on topic!

Try the shortwave radios, great reception (depending on area) something like the ccrane skywave ssb or eton satellite.

https://www.ccrane.com/item/RAD_CCR...FwM5uakFCY2WVxTKB4X1uEFgiSKL_hCIaAq4-EALw_wcB

https://etoncorp.com/collections/information/products/executive-satellit

 

[Young Turk]

If you paid with a credit card, see if they have a purchase protection coverage on it. Some of them cover up to 90 days for theft and damage. Doesn’t hurt to check!

Great point, and I'm embarrassed as a trial lawyer that I didn't think of this. But taking your cue, I looked into it, and the United Airlines Chase Visa that I used *DOES* offer buyer protection. I called, they verified coverage, and I made the claim.

Note: I'm typing this on the replacement Mac (identical to first).